


Horse to Water

by Abbie_Darkwin



Category: Star Stable, The Scorpio Races - Maggie Stiefvater
Genre: Game: Star Stable Online
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-03
Updated: 2020-05-02
Packaged: 2021-03-01 23:48:44
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,508
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23955616
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Abbie_Darkwin/pseuds/Abbie_Darkwin
Summary: "You will never tame her, for she is the sea."After receiving a mysterious letter from an Aunt she hadn't heard from in years, Abbie Darkwin travels to Jorvik to help her Aunt with some new breed of horse. Except, when she arrives, the new breed her Aunt warned her about is unlike anything she'd ever encountered.
Kudos: 2





	Horse to Water

**Author's Note:**

> So, I've moved this story from Instagram to here, only because I didn't have enough room to write what I wanted to. All images will be posted on each chapter here as well as on IG. 
> 
> With that being said, I'm starting here where I left off on Instagram, so please head over there to read the previous 3 posts!
> 
> IG: @abbie.darkwin

I left the creature back at the barn with Conor and Màiri.

Gunner seemed more upset about leaving his friend than the beast corralled in some small alcove in the cliff. How that flimsy stock-gate fence contained that thing, I have no idea, and I wasn’t about to find out. 

Once Màiri repeated the fact that this particular breed of horse happened to be carnivorous, I had turned on my heel and left. I didn’t exactly know where to go, but Gunner seemed to, so I let him lead me home. All I wanted was to get away from whatever sat keening in that pen.

I even tried to convince myself of this whole thing being some sort of sick joke. But hearing that sound come out of that horse, reading Màiri’s notes, seeing the utter fear on Hank’s face as he neared the creature, I knew it was real. And I couldn’t even attempt to think differently. 

Gunner’s ears pricked at the sight of a large windmill towering in the distance. I had to admit though, Aunt Màiri’s farm, and South Hoof in general, was actually very beautiful. The entirety of South Hoof seemed to be uninhabited land, save for the farm. If I wasn’t suddenly terrified to step foot on the island, Gunner and I would be spending our days on this land, roaming and adventuring and _living_. 

As we drew closer to the farm, I realized that I had no clue as to where Gunner was supposed, let alone myself. Màiri had mentioned a stable hand coming to collect my bags at the dock earlier, if I could find whoever that had been, I might be able to head in the right direction. 

Seeing home, Gunner’s head lifted higher as he cantered, his steps becoming higher and full of excitement. This horse seemed to enjoy life more than most people I know. Giggling a little, I gave him the reins and let him stretch out a bit, throwing my worries to the dust in our wake for the time being. The stocky buckskin kept his head high and ears forward, as happy as can be. 

Though I wouldn’t normally let a horse gallop toward home, something about his absolute joy made it almost impossible to hold him back. 

As Gunner’s hooves thundered across the ground, I eventually had to pull him back before he stepped on the dusty cobblestone path up ahead. “Easy,” I drawled, sitting back a bit to pull him in. “You’ve had your fun, now take it easy.”

Gunner’s ears flipped back to me briefly, his gait stuttering as he bounced into a trot. As I brought him back to a walk, his sides heaving with excitement, I scanned the property for anyone that might be able to help. Over near a side barn housing cattle, was a man sawing through some baling twine with a short knife. He looked toward us at the sound of Gunner’s hooves, standing straight as we approached. 

“You must be Abbie,” He said, tipping his head a little once we got closer. “Màiri won’t shut up about you.”

I dismounted Gunner, who immediately dropped his head to sniff at the cobblestone. I gave one of his reins a gentle tug to bring his head back up, and with a slight huff of annoyance, he obeyed. 

“Seeing as I haven’t spoken to Màiri in years,” I started, running the reins through my fingers. “I’m not entirely sure what stories she’d have to go on about.”

After loosening Gunner’s girth a little, I finally turned to see the stablehand. He seemed to tower over me, and the sudden thought of how ridiculous he might look on a horse Gunner’s size amused me. The stablehand stuck his hand out for me to shake it, and once I met his eyes, I froze for a moment. 

The left one was so dark it seemed to match his pitch black hair, while the right was such a stark blue it seemed to glow in comparison. 

“Ronan,” He said as I shook his hand. Ronan glanced between me and Gunner. “I suppose you’d like to get settled in then?”

I gave Gunner a pat on the neck, tearing my eyes away from Ronan’s “Yeah, just point me in the right direction.”

Ronan smiled, folding the knife he’d been using on the bale of hay at his feet and pocketing it. He stepped around the bale and scratched at Gunner’s nose. “Follow me.”

I tugged Gunner along, the sound of his hooves loud in the peacefulness of the farm. Ronan led us toward an archway toward a larger barn. He turned to look at me over his shoulder before pointing to a house on the left. “That’s Màiri’s house,” Ronan turned to face me, stopping momentarily and pointed toward a house we passed just before the archway. “That’s where a few of the other stablehands live, and the small house behind that is mine.”

We continued forward, following the path around a large tree towering above the barn. Ronan turned to me once again, smiling and holding his hand out. “I’ll put Gunner away for the night.” He then pointed toward a small archway next to the barn, a dirt path underneath it. “Follow that path to your house. All of your bags are in there.”

I handed the reins over to Ronan, patting Gunner once again. “Thank you.” I said, stepping around the two to head toward the path. I was stopped in my tracks though as Ronan tapped my arm. I turned back to look at him, an odd look on his face. 

“Màiri showed you the Capall Uisce, didn’t she?”

Not really wanting to have this conversation right now, I nodded tightly. Ronan dropped his head, shaking it a little as he let out a huff of a laugh. 

“I told her not to,” He said. “Those things aren’t the easiest to get used to. You’ll learn more about them the longer you’re here.”

“If I’m even here that long,” I added, crossing my arms. Ronan chuckled again. 

“Yeah,” He looked up at Gunner, who stood patiently. “He needs fed, so I’ll see you tomorrow.”

And with a tip of his hat, Ronan pulled Gunner into the barn.

* * *

I honestly didn’t expect Màiri to bring that creature back to the barn. 

I don’t even really know how they managed to get him here anyway. I only really noticed he was here when I heard the same screech I heard down at Conor’s barn. Even in my house, I could hear it. The wail seemed to turn my blood to ice and I froze in the middle of unpacking. The feeling of dread washed over me and made me sick to my stomach. 

After a few minutes of wailing from the… Capall Uisce… someone knocked on my door. WIthout really thinking, I opened the door to see Màiri standing there, her hat in her hands. Her red hair was unruly and her clothes were splashed with mud and water. 

“I wanted to see how you were settling in.” She spoke up, fiddling with her hat when the horse screamed again. Seeing the look on my face, Màiri continued. “They really aren’t as bad as they seem-”

I raised an eyebrow, laughing. “Màiri, they’re carnivorous horses,” I said, exasperated. “Horses are dangerous enough to begin with, let alone one that wants to eat me.”

“You’ve worked with horses all your life,” She added. I stared at her. “He won’t be any diff-”

“You can’t just drop a bomb like that on someone, Màiri!” I threw my hands up. Màiri shifted the hat again. “Your notes were nowhere near enough to prepare me.”

“I wrote all about them in there,” Màiri said, glancing over her shoulder towards the barn. I caught a blurred glimpse of a dark creature flying around the dirt paddock then, shrieking like before. 

“You shouldn’t keep him in a pen that size,” I say, arms crossed. “He needs to be in a round pen, something small with high walls.”

Màiri smiled at this, putting her hat back on. “He’s here only for a few. We’re going to load him up tonight and bring him to a place more equipped until he's a little more quiet.”

“I doubt that’s going to happen anytime soon.”

Màiri glanced at me before looking back to the paddock. Two figures stood near the fence, watching the horse circle. “You’re welcome to come meet him. He is yours. But I’ll make sure you learn about them, either from myself or from my stablehand, Ronan.”

After standing for a moment longer, Màiri wished me goodnight and turned to walk down the path toward the barn once again. Watching the horse sprint around in a large circle, I huffed, slipped my boots on, and followed behind Màiri. 

No matter how many red flags seemed to cloud my thoughts, I was curious as to what this creature was and why I’d never heard of them in my life. 


End file.
